1.2: Chemical Technology & the Origins of Chemistry

 

To begin our story, let’s look at the beginning of humankind’s love affair with technology, specifically chemical technology. Before starting, take another look at the definition of chemistry: 

 

Definition: Term

chemistry - the branch of science that investigates the nature of matter and its transformations.

 

That last bit is critical. If matter was static, there would be limited utility in studying it. Indeed, it would be impossible to do so, because if matter was static life would be impossible! Nature transforms matter all the time by pathways that border on the miraculous. Our experience, as a species, in transforming matter has a long history. Since before recorded history began we have been enthusiastically transforming the materials provided by Nature into new ones. People from every culture manipulated available materials to make them stronger, more durable, more aesthetically pleasing. 

The oldest surviving records of human activity are chemicals themselves: dyes and pigments used to make cave paintings were obtained from plant, animal, and mineral sources to create art. The famous examples from Lascaux, France, and even older paintings found in Southeast Asia (Figure 1-6), are likely the earliest examples of chemical technology - the deliberate application and/or transformation of materials to perform specific tasks. Later examples include the use of fire and kilns to make pottery from clay and, eventually improved kilns, capable of reaching much higher temperatures, were used to make glass and “win” metals from their ores. 

 

 

Figure 1-6. An example of cave art from Indonesia, estimated to be about 45,000 years old. The pigments used to create the hand stencils include ground ochre, composed primarily of iron oxide. (Image source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:G...ife-LHFage.jpg; made available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication)

 

 

 

 

None of these processes were developed from what we now would call science [2]; there was no formal hypothesis testing, for example. Rather, they were often discovered by accident and refined through trial and error over generations. Many chemicals are the products of such practices and have been used since antiquity or earlier. They were embraced because they improved the lives of those that used them: hunting and farming (and warring) became easier, transportation, building, and communications were all enhanced, survivability improved. It was this age-old concept that inspired the DuPont Corporation’s slogan, adopted in the 1930s, but often derided since then, “Better Things for Better Living...Through Chemistry” (Figure 1-7).

The above descriptions of how chemical technology evolved may be a bit of a surprise. It is certainly different from the cartoonish view people often have concerning the advancement of science: that of bespectacled experimentalists, donned in white lab coats, and having the occasional “Eureka!” moments of discovery. But they provide a fair depiction of the beginnings of what became the field of chemistry. Its origins are murky in places: old practices, invented and refined by alchemists, magicians, and medical charlatans, gave rise to a sophisticated array of technical practices, long before anything like the scientific method was employed. When modern science emerged from the Renaissance in Europe, a wealth of chemical technology, much of it developed and passed down by these colorful characters, was bequeathed to it and the science of chemistry was born. Chemistry, therefore, is a unique branch of science in that it has two distinct historical roots: the practical, older than civilization itself, involved manipulating existing materials to make new ones, and the theoretical, the much more recent quest to discover the underlying principles of material transformations. Obviously, the more one understands about the latter, the more effective one can be at carrying out the former. It is our goal in this text that neither aspect of chemistry be neglected - the theoretical is important, but is most acutely so when it informs the ability to solve practical problems.
 

Figure 1-7. A vintage du Pont advertisement for cellophane from a 1953 issue of The Saturday Evening Post; note the classic slogan below the company on the bottom right. It may come as a surprise that this transparent film is actually made from wood byproducts, like sawdust, and is still widely used for many applications (although wrapping babies in it is discouraged). (Image source: retrieved from http://milindo-taid.net/2012/du-pont-cellophane-advertisements-1930-1950/ , Creative Commons 3.0)

 

 

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Footnotes and References.

 

[2] If you are unfamiliar with the Scientific Method and how it helps define what is and what is not properly called science, see, for example: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_method